Wilhelmsen Ship Management has pushed into the offshore wind market with the purchase of a 50% stake in NorSea Wind, a specialist in windfarm logistics and technical solutions.
The deal follows a successful joint bid last year to provide maintenance services for off and onshore transformer stations in the German area of the North Sea.
Carl Schou, president and chief executive of Wilhelmsen Ship Management, said the investment was the company’s formal jump into the offshore wind sector.
“Today, there is not a one-stop shop for offshore wind, it’s a very fragmented market with many small players who do different things,” Schou said during an interview at Nor-Shipping.
“Offshore wind is a very new market — so we have a chance to structure it and set the playing rules a little.”
Game-changing aims
While Schou was careful with his wording, he was hopeful of building a game-changing venture in the offshore wind market.
While Wilhelmsen Ship Management already offers services to offshore transformer stations, it will now target everything from turbine maintenance to small crew vessels.
NorSea Wind was owned by NorSea Group, in which Wilhelmsen Ship Management’s parent company owns a stake of around 75%.
Despite the close relationship, Schou said there was no special treatment with the price, which he described as a fair valuation.
“It’s not that because there is a Wilhelmsen group connection we get it for a dollar, believe me,” he said.
He added that the logic in the investment should bring “tremendous spin-off on both sides”.
The transaction forms part of a busy Nor-Shipping week for Wilhelmsen Ship Management.
On Monday, it offered its vision for shipmanagement of the future, including a view of the shore control centre it plans to use for its first autonomous ships.
Schou believes autonomous vessels are closer than many believe, with his company hopeful of managing the Yara Birkeland — the first autonomous boxship with zero emissions — when it launches next year.
Good fit
The Wilhelmsen group is part of an autonomous shipping project with Kongsberg, with joint venture Massterly set up last year.
Schou said the Yara Birkeland would be a good fit for his company, but stressed nothing had been signed for Wilhelmsen Ship Management to manage the vessel.
“As far as I can see into the future, autonomy will be shortsea, coastal, that type of trade,” he said. "Deepsea, we are probably looking a bit further.”
Wilhelmsen Ship Management, which also showcased its Spark energy efficiency app on Monday, has been future-proofing for some time.
"The first step we took was relocating the headquarters from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Singapore last year," Schou said.
"Singapore announced a couple of years ago its goal was to be the leading digital maritime nation in the world, so they are really pushing digital. That was one of the things that attracted us to Singapore."
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